


Could Have Been Anyone

by Mulletking



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Anxiety Disorder, Bang Chan & Han Jisung | Han & Seo Changbin are Best Friends, Bang Chan & Lee Felix are Siblings, Bang Chan is a Good Friend, Costume Parties & Masquerades, First Meetings, Flirty Lee Minho | Lee Know, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Halloween Costumes, Han Jisung | Han-centric, Heterochromia, High School, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Underage Drinking, Inspired by Music, M/M, Minor Hwang Hyunjin/Kim Seungmin, Minor Lee Felix/Seo Changbin, Musical References, No Smut, Rich Kim Seungmin, Sad Han Jisung | Han, Sexual Tension, Sexuality Crisis, Shy Han Jisung | Han, Shy Yang Jeongin | I.N, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:34:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25481719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mulletking/pseuds/Mulletking
Summary: "Hey, I'm Minho." He suddenly said, as if he hadn't just been introduced. Jisung thought it was kind of funny, but dismissed it because this guy was probably drunk. Most of the people there were drunk."And THIS," he said, turning around and slapping his own ass. "Is Double Bubble." And Jesus H. CHRIST was the second hand embarrassment enough to kill.OR the one where Han Jisung is a shy senior in high school with very few friends, and Lee Minho is the weird new transfer student he meets at a Halloween party, befriends in chemistry class, and falls for over countless conversations.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 5
Kudos: 29





	1. Halloween Chemistry (the two types of alcohol)

**Author's Note:**

> Just want to specify that parts where Jisung is writing are quoted from the song GB Eating EB Whilst Listening to GB by Crywank, and are NOT my original thoughts. Pls listen to Crywank, okie thas all :D

"Hey." Jisung faintly hears the sound of someone's voice over his headphones. He continues writing in his notebook. 'Enthusiastic. Beyond belief / In a busy room, you're all I see.' He sits alone at the back table in the chemistry lab. He's been assigned a partner more than once - he can't remember any of their names - but they always switch tables while the teacher isn't looking. Jisung really doesn't care, he can get the work done twice as fast without some bonehead breathing down his neck and asking useless questions, but that's not the point. The point is that people don't talk to Han Jisung. He's got three friends in this world; Chan, Changbin, and Felix, although Chan is the only one he would consider his true friend. He loves Changbin and Felix, it's just not the same. He chalks it up to the fact that he's known Chan since preschool. Changbin has only been around… six years. Six years is not enough to be entirely close with someone, according to Jisung's mental rule book. And since Felix is Chan's little brother, he feels more like one to Jisung too. It doesn't matter anyway because Jisung does not have any classes with any of them, so yeah. Chemistry, alone. All day, alone. He likes it, wouldn't trade it for a million friends. He's always been this way, and it means he can get a lot of writing done during the school day.  


"Are you ignoring me?" There it is again, the voice that can just be heard over the song Jisung is listening to. 'Your Love' by The Outfield. If he didn't know any better it would seem like someone was trying to get his attention. But he does know better, and he knows that when he was younger he used to think sometimes that someone wanted to talk to him, and he would reply to a conversation that embarrassingly had nothing to do with him. He cringes at the unwarranted memories of middle school Jisung, untrained in the ways shutting out the plebians.  


A set of neatly manicured nails taps on Jisung's desk right next to his notebook, and he startles so badly his butt nearly leaves the seat.  


"Wha- wha-" He pulls his headphones down, face snapping up towards the person standing by his desk. The classroom is busy right now. Everyone is setting up their work stations, turning on bunsen burners and dropping tongs on the floor. The metal is loud against the tile, and Jisung flinches.  


"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." His attention is redirected at the guy to his left, the one with the clean fingernails, the one who is… apologizing to Jisung? The gears are turning ever so slowly in the blond boy's brain. He's assessing the situation, trying to understand where he knows this guy from.  


"No, you're good, it wasn't you. Just the tongs." Jisung mumbles.  


"The tongs?" The guy asks.  


"Hmm?" Jisung raises his eyebrows. He adjusts his headphones around his neck, shifts in his seat slightly. It's obvious how antsy and uncomfortable he is. "Oh, yeah, someone dropped some tongs over there." He restates.  


"Ah, I see." The guy says. He's wearing a green sweater with gold embroidered lettering that reads MCA, probably some college, and he now has his hands stuffed into the pockets of his blue jeans as he bounces on his toes. His demeanor is half casual - half awkward. Jisung can't relate to that, his awkwardness is full on. This guy… that's right! He's the new kid. New-ish kid? He transferred just a few weeks ago. What was his name again? Lee something. Lee Minho?  


Jisung's heart rate suddenly skyrockets as an influx of memories from three nights ago come into his brain. Halloween fell on a Friday this year, and Chan got invited to some dumb high school party hosted by a guy called Jaehyun from a school a couple of towns away. Jisung had never been to a party, and he'd like to say that was still the case, but Chan and Changbin were both going, and they were taking Felix, who was bringing all of his friends, and Jisung didn't want to spend Halloween night completely alone. He would rather have just gone over to Channie's and watched horror movies and ate candy like they had for the past ten years, but that just wasn't an option. So he chose to wear the safest costume he could think of, a ghost (the sheet kind, which meant his face would be completely hidden the whole time), and ride along. Chan made sure Jisung knew he could stick with him, so of course he did. If they hadn't stayed for so long maybe it wouldn't have been so God awful, but they did stay for so long. Three and a half hours or something, ticking on four. Changbin got fucking wasted, Jisung remembers that. It wasn't that anything dramatic happened, the party was mostly uneventful, but it was too big and small at the same time, and too loud and sweaty and just… no.  


But around an hour into clinging onto Chan's shirt sleeve like a lost puppy and stealing from the snack table, Felix appeared to introduce his friend group (namely, Seungmin and Hyunjin) to Chan's new friend, Jeongin. That was partially the reason Chan had wanted to go to the party in the first place. Jeongin was only a Freshman and he had a bit of a hard time branching out, and it was one of Bang Chan's personal missions to make sure everyone felt like they had friends, so he was determined to have Jeongin meet everyone.  


Seungmin and Hyunjin were Felix's best friends, Jisung knew that much. They had all run into each other at Chan and Felix's house at one point or another. But there was this new guy there, someone Jisung hadn't ever met before, or let alone SEEN before. He was presumably dressed up as a black cat; wearing a black button up shirt, black tie, and ridiculously tight black leather pants. To top it off he had the tip of his nose painted black, whiskers drawn on his cheeks, pointed black ears coming up from his mess of brown hair, and two different coloured contact lenses in - one green and one amber. He was sipping something from a red solo cup and his gaze travelled all around the room in an almost bored and 'anxious to do anything else' manner. At the time Jisung had flipped his sheet up so he could say hi to Felix, leaving his boring and undecorated face as exposed as his boring grey T shirt and sweatpants. He hadn't even bothered to wear denim, that was how little he cared about the stupid party.  


"Jeongin! This is Seungmin and Hyunjin!" Felix had said with a blinding smile. And then, "Everyone, this is Minho." He dragged the boy forward so violently he nearly spilled his drink, and then opened up his arms in a grand gesture like he was presenting an award, only the award was a mildly put off but mostly unbothered boy dressed like a Cat Woman.  


"Hey, what's up, man?" Changbin offered a casual invitation to conversation. He was impressively well mannered for having already consumed six jello shots, but that was Changbin, he was always cool.  


"You go to the same school as us?" Chan asked.  


"Yeah, I just transferred." Minho had said, and threw back the rest of his cup. It was only then that he locked eyes with Jisung, who had been staring off into space and munching his pretzels just waiting for the moment Chan would declare it was time to go home.  


"Hey, I'm Minho." He suddenly said, as if he hadn't just been introduced. Jisung thought it was kind of funny, but dismissed it because this guy was probably drunk. Most of the people there were drunk.  


"And THIS," he said, turning around and slapping his own ass. "Is Double Bubble." And Jesus H. CHRIST was the second hand embarrassment enough to kill.  


"Wow, that's…" Jisung looked around for some kind of explanation and saw Felix grimacing and shaking his head while waving his hand in a flat plane, fingers pointed toward his own throat, as if to say, 'just ignore it.'  


"You can name your BUTT?" Hyunjin asked in awe, taking the attention off of Jisung. "I wanna do that!"  


That night, when it was finally time to leave, everyone went back to Chan's house. That wasn't the original plan. In the original plan, Jisung and Changbin stayed the night at Chan's to carry out their regular cozy and introverted halloween activities. Felix might have had Hyunjin or Seungmin stay over too, Jisung wasn't sure about that, but it all became irrelevant anyway because Jeongin accidentally drank spiked punch so he couldn't go home, and Hyunjin had decided that Minho was his favorite friend of the night after naming their butts or something and it made the two inseparable. Felix didn't want to spend halloween night without his best friends, and Seungmin wouldn't go anywhere Hyunjin wasn't going, and Hyunjin wasn't going anywhere without Minho and his double bubble, so in the end EVERYONE stayed over. And that was basically the end of that.  


"So, you don't have a lab partner?" Minho asks. A small part of Jisung, the inner part of him that is witty and fun, wants to ask 'What makes you say that?' Because it's very obvious he isn't working with anyone given how he's spread out all of his books over the entire desk and the seat next to him only exists to hold his backpack, and he could make fun of himself for being such a loner, but it's the shy and boring Jisung that responds.  


"Nope." He says. He says 'nope' instead of 'no' because 'no' is just too abrupt and he doesn't want to seem like he's mean. He's just… quiet, or something.  


"How come?" Minho asks. Jisung realizes for the first time that Minho was not, in fact, wearing contacts at the halloween party. Heterochromia, a condition in which the irises are multicolored. It's pretty, Jisung thinks. Jisung also wonders if Minho remembers the party, and if he does, does he remember the whole night or just select parts? He's acting quite cool for someone who introduced their own butt as a separate entity to a stranger; Jisung can't get it out of his head.  


"I like working alone." He lies. Well, it's not really a LIE. He does like working alone, but that's not the reason he doesn't have a lab partner. His lab partner is currently sitting at a table on the other side of the room chatting with their friends.  


"Care if I sit here?" Minho asks, pointing to the chair with Jisung's bag in it. "Don't worry, I won't try to help you. You can still work alone." Jisung furrows his eyebrows at that. Why now, of all the days and weeks and years, is someone asking to sit with him?  


"Sure." Jisung says, and hauls his bag down to the floor. "What happened to your seat?" He asks.  


"Nothing." Minho says as he sits down. His hair is that same disheveled mess that it was three nights ago. It's artfully messy. "Just didn't like my lab partner." Jisung laughs at that. It's a silent laugh, the one people do when they're alone and they read something funny. More of a big exhale through his nose than a genuine laugh.  


"Something wrong with them?" Jisung asks. He puts one side of his headphones back over his ear, but keeps the one closest to Minho free so he can listen.  


"She was stupid." Minho says flatly. He opens the cupboard below the desk and starts to retrieve flasks and beakers.  


"Jeez." Jisung scoffs. That's the type of thing he would think, but never say out loud. Not unless he was talking to Chan or Changbin.  


"I'm serious, she asked me if it takes 18 months for twins to be born."  


"Wait, for real? Like she really wanted to know?" Jisung asks.  


"Deadass." Minho shrugs. "I told her that my twins only took a year. She gave me a weird look after that, I don't know what she was expecting." Jisung actually laughs at that, and Minho smiles, but he keeps his focus on setting up his work station. "Sure, twelve months might be a little too soon for twins, but I can only imagine what she would say if I told her my triplets took just ten."  


"So you have twins AND triplets?" Jisung decides to play along for some reason. He watches Minho rather closely, forgetting whatever he was writing about. "Do they have the same mom?"  


"Woah, woah, woah, who said anything about a mom?" Minho says. "I had those babies on my own, like a real man. And no, I don't still have them. I pawned them off to the little green lady who lives behind my house." Minho is a bit strange, it seems. Jisung wonders if he was drunk at all during the party, or if his behaviour then was just normal for Minho. Whatever the case, they continue talking like it's the easiest thing in the world for the full 80 minute class. Jisung learns that Minho has three cats who he loves very much, he used to live in the city but came out here to bumfuck-nowhere-ville (Minho's words) when his mom couldn't afford their apartment anymore, his parents split up when he was young but his useless dad hardly pays child support, and his favorite word is 'enrapture.' It all seems like pretty personal stuff to be sharing on a first time (second time?) meeting. Perhaps Minho just doesn't care. He has that aloof kind of vibe, like he's laughing and enjoying himself but he could also get bored quite easily. He seemed like that at the party too.  


"Enrapture?" Jisung asks.  


"Yeah." Minho says.  


"Why?"  


"A few reasons. One, it's fun to say. Two, it reminds me of a dinosaur, and so does Seungmin, and Seungmin makes me angry, and being angry makes me productive, so the word is like a little dose of personal motivation. Three, enrapture literally means 'to give intense pleasure or joy,' and I think that's nice - to bring joy." Minho explains.  


"Seungmin reminds you of a dinosaur?" Jisung asks, holding back a laugh yet again. Minho rolls his eyes.  


"God, don't even get me started." He huffs.  


"Can I just ask… what kind?"  


"That's easy. Pachycephalosaurus. And if you don't know what that is, it's a really stupid and aggressive dinosaur with a bony skull it uses to ram into it's enemies. Like this," Minho hits himself over the head with his chemistry textbook and frowns. "Pretty fitting, right?" It's clear that he's thought about this before.  


"Why do you hate Seungmin so much?" Jisung asks. Minho pours a clear liquid from one container into another without any apparent form of measuring or accuracy.  


"I don't HATE him, he just gets on my nerves. It's because he has such a thick skull and he's a smarmy smug little know-it-all and he's always right and he has to have everything his way all the time because his way is perfect and everything has to be clean and neat and perfect and his friggin voice is the most annoying thing I've ever heard." Minho's words string together into a heated run on, and Jisung raises his eyebrows.  


"Wow, so he does NOT enrapture you?"  


"Well, no. We argue, and sometimes I think about punching him in his stupid glasses, but we're friends so I wouldn't."  


"It doesn't sound like you're friends." Jisung notes.  


"We are. It's complicated. I love to hate him."  


"I thought you just said you didn't hate him?"  


"I don't. I love him. I love to hate him, which really means I love him. Right?" Minho says.  


"Uh, sure." Jisung agrees even though he doesn't understand. He doesn't have anything against Seungmin, but he also doesn't know him very well. He can see how he might be somewhat of a prick.  


"So, you're friends with Felix though?" Jisung poses this as a question despite already knowing the answer.  


"Yeah, Felix is cool. I like him." Minho says. He curses under his breath when something goes awry with his experiment and a pungent vinegar smell clouds around the work station.  


"Do you know what you're doing?" Jisung asks. It's a genuine question, one that holds the offer of help, but Jisung doesn't consider how it might sound condescending.  


"Yeah, no, I'm good." Minho lies. He frantically turns the bunsen burner off. "Aren't you supposed to be doing something? Or by 'working alone' did you mean that you just sit there looking sad?" The question takes Jisung off guard, and he finds himself feeling defensive but he's not sure why.  


"I did this experiment yesterday, I'm ahead in this class." He says.  


"Why did you ask about Felix?"  


"Oh, I was just curious. I'm best friends with Bang Chan, so…"  


"Oh, right. Chan." Minho says flatly. At least, Jisung thinks it's flat. He's on edge suddenly, waiting for Minho to turn into a crappy person. People have a tendency to do that, turn crappy.  


"Something wrong with Chan?" Jisung asks. Minho looks over at him, surprise evident in the way his eyes open like saucers, and his long eyelashes are just now registering as another pretty detail in Jisung's mind  


"What? No. I barely know the guy. Why?"  


"Oh, it's nothing, just… sorry." Jisung says.  


"You're kinda funny." Minho observes. The corner of his mouth curls up. He's got a little mole near his right nostril.  


"I didn't do anything." Jisung says. Minho just laughs. He cleans up the glasses and chemicals quickly, and not three minutes later the bell rings.  


"See you around." Minho says, slinging his bag clumsily over one shoulder. He's just walking away when he stops abruptly and turns back around like he's forgetting something.  


"Jisung… right?" He asks.  


"Yeah." Jisung says.  


"I thought I'd seen you before." Minho says, alluding to the fact that he DOES remember the party. That would also imply that he feels no shame about what happened, and Jisung is far more traumatized by it than him. "Jisung, Jisung, Jisung…" Minho mutters as he leaves the room, like he's testing the name out for errors. And just like that it's all over.


	2. Baseball or Nah?

Math is the last class of Jisung's day. He gets so invested in trying to finish the homework right away so he won't have to do it when he's actually home that he's late to catch the bus. Just a half a minute too late. He ran out the door with his bag barely zipped up, papers clutched in his fist and no doubt getting crumpled, but his bus was just pulling out of the parking lot. He watches in utter defeat as the yellow vehicle disappears from sight. He didn't even finish the homework, dammit. To top it off, as if having to walk nearly twelve miles home isn't bad enough, it starts to snow. It's the first snow of the year.  


Jisung stands with his arms out slightly, repeatedly taking one step back and one step forward, like a Sim having a glitch. He's unsure what to do; go back in the building and call his parents? Or just wing it and start walking? Chan's house is a lot closer to the school, he could just walk there and ask if Chan will drive him the rest of the way. Alternatively he could call Chan and ask him to pick him up from the school, then he wouldn't have to walk at all. He doesn't want to impose though, even if they've been friends for 14 years.  


Jisung ends up turning back toward the school with his head down and his hands in his pockets. It should be easier for him to decide how to get home if he's not freezing his ass off. The snow that lands in his hair melts almost instantly and leaves him feeling like he took an ice bath.  


He chucks his bag on the floor and it slides up to the wall where it stops with a loud thunk that echoes around the empty foyer.  


"Oh, hey, Jisung."  


"Ah!" Jisung leaps into the air at the voice, and his little yelp also echoes around the not-so-empty foyer.  


"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to scare you." It's Seungmin. He's standing slightly off kilter, with his knees bent, back leaning against the wall and arms casually crossed over his chest. Seungmin probably has the best hair in school. It's got volume, texture, shine, height. He wears cool clothes too, always somehow following trends that haven't yet started and exclusively dressing on brand. His family is loaded, everyone knows that. Jisung has seen the outside of his house a couple of times when riding along with Chan as he dropped Felix off.  


"No, it's fine, I just didn't know someone was here." Jisung says.  


"Why are you still here?" Seungmin asks and yeah his voice is a little bit more nasally than what could be considered pleasant, but it's not horrible. Jisung hadn't ever thought about it before talking to Minho. And Seungmin's glasses are kind of awful. They're big and the lenses are so thick they make his eyes look five times bigger than what they are. The wire frames rest just below his eyebrows, outlining them in a way that makes him look permanently angry.  


"Missed the bus. I was gonna call Chan." Jisung says. Seungmin sniffles and clears his throat.  


"Hey I could give you a ride if you need it." He says, and brings a hand up to the back of his neck. Seungmin is awkward and nerdy but in a purposeful kind of way. Jisung is just awkward and nerdy. Seungmin is good-looking and rich. Jisung is good-looking too, he thinks so at least, but he wears the same three outfits in an endless rotation and barely has two friends.  


"I mean, I don't want to put you out." Jisung says.  


"Hey, I offered. It's not a problem, really. Photography club was cancelled, so I'm just waiting for Hyunjin to come out of the bathroom, then we're leaving." Seungmin explains. Hwang Hyunjin - the most popular boy in school. Jisung honestly has a lot to say about Hyunjin; he likes him, envies him, hates him, looks up to him, pities him, has basically felt any humanly possible emotion towards him, but he's more familiar than Seungmin and so his presence might make a car trip be less anxiety inducing.  


"I mean it's kind of far out." Jisung says. Hyunjin and Seungmin both live on relatively the same stretch of road as Chan, but Jisung's trailer is on the opposite side of the river out in the sticks.  


"I drive a car, Jisung. It's great on gas. I promise you're not asking too much by accepting my invitation for a ride home because it's cold and snowy out and your windbreaker probably isn't the best against the weather." Seungmin says. His words are almost sarcastic, but not quite. Just teasing, but there's a sincerity in his face.  


"Yeah, okay. Thank you." Jisung agrees and retrieves his backpack from the floor.  


"Really, it's not a problem." Seungmin says. Hyunjin appears through the interior doors and immediately shivers.  


"Jeez, it's so cold." He says. He pulls his tan suede coat closed around his shoulders but doesn't put his arms through the sleeves.  


"What, were you pooping? Took you long enough." Seungmin says, pushing himself off the wall and collecting his car keys from his pocket. He swings the yellow sunflower patterned lanyard around his finger and the keys jingle as they make loops through the air.  


"Gross, no." Hyunjin pouts and slaps Seungmin's chest. The brown haired does not react.  


"Jisung is coming with us." Seungmin says, and Hyunjin looks over to the boy mentioned with his eyebrows raised and his lips forming a little "o" as if he only just now realizes Jisung is even there. A half a second later and he breaks into a crooked smile, crescent eyes and little round teeth like mentos gum  


"Jisung!" He says. "How fun!" Hyunjin is naturally charming. There's something about his very existence that is just so loveable. It's no surprise that literally everyone and their mother is head over heels for him. Whether it be watching him from afar and daydreaming about going on a romantic date (Hyunjin's long hair would look positively enchanting under a night sky), or simply vying for his attention just to get the chance to say "hi," being friends with Hwang Hyunjin is a fantasy that not many can live in. Jisung finds it somewhat irritating how perfect the blond is. He's determined to find a catch, but the fact that he hasn't been able to in almost three years is actually borderline infuriating. Even the things about Hyunjin that are supposed to be annoying - his drama queen attitude, his inability to take advice, his disgustingly romantic view of the world - just make him that much more endearing. Thinking about it makes Jisung boil under the surface.  


"Hey, what's up?" He says. It's the polite thing to say, the normal thing to say.  


"It feels like I haven't seen you in… well three days! Has it been three days? I don't remember anymore. We all need to get together again at some point though, I had so much fun." Hyunjin says as the three boys walk out into the snow. Ah yes, going to a stranger's house for three hours and watching classmates you barely know the names of get drunk and make out is SO much fun. 10/10, the best night ever. Would recommend.  


"Ah, did you?" Jisung asks, and despite the loud notes of sarcasm in his voice Hyunjin continues on.  


"Yeah it was wild, haha! Seungmin, remember when that random guy tried to fight you?"  


"Which time?" Seungmin asks with a snort. This grabs Jisung's interest. He can't for the life of him imagine Kim Seungmin getting into a fist fight. The scenario plays out in Jisung's head like this: someone pushes Seungmin, Seungmin apologizes and moves on like the sophisticated guy he is, the person punches Seungmin in the face and Seungmin falls on his ass because it turns out he's not sophisticated but he is, in fact, chicken shit. It's kind of funny.  


"Wait, someone tried to fight you?" Jisung asks.  


"Yeah, it wasn't serious though. It actually happened three times, all different people. I guess my face just makes people angry." Seungmin shrugs.  


"Yeah, I guess so." Jisung says, remembering how heated Minho had gotten earlier just talking about Seungmin. In this moment, Jisung still can't figure out what's to hate about the guy.  


"I hope you don't mind a little excursion." Seungmin says once they reach his black Audi. "I have to stop at Starbucks. Can't go anywhere without it."  


"No, that's fine. I'm not in any rush." Jisung says.  


"You drink coffee? I can get you something too." Seungmin says.  


"Oh, yeah sure. Thanks, you really don't have to." Jisung says.  


"Yeah, I know. You're too modest, Jisung. I wouldn't offer if I didn't want to." Seungmin says. The inside of his car is so spotless it feels brand new. The black leather seats are soft and genuinely comfortable. Not comfortable like, 'oh yeah, that's pretty bearable considering it's a car,' but comfortable like Jisung would probably sleep better in this back seat than he would in his own bed. There's a little apple scented freshener clipped into the AC vent, but besides that there is absolutely nothing personal about the interior. Chan's van is a whole different story; it's old and it smells like it, there's a mysterious tear in the fabric of the passenger seat, there's constantly empty bottles and wrappers floating around. Sometimes there's really weird stuff in the back like a whole watermelon, one knee pad, a pool floaty, and a set of seriously messed up acrylic paints. It might be a little stinky, but it's reliable and it's always been there, not too different from Bang Chan himself, Jisung thinks. Seungmin's car has a posh kind of vibe as soon you step foot in it, and Jisung is worried that he's contaminating it just by having his broke ass in the seat.  


Hyunjin doesn't seem to feel the same way. He takes a banana out of his lunch box and takes the sticker off, then presses it onto the dashboard. Seungmin glances at him out of the corner of his eye and frowns.  


"You know I hate it when you do that." He mutters, reaching for the sticker.  


"Leave it!" Hyunjin swats his hand away and begins to peel his banana. Seungmin huffs something inaudible. The smell of the fruit is ridiculously strong and Jisung scrunches up his nose.  


"You're not even supposed to eat in here." Seungmin says.  


"Well, I am." Hyunjin says.  


"It's drinks only. Do I need to bring the sign back?" Seungmin sounds like he's holding back from a very petty and potentially bitter argument. Hyunjin gulps down half of his banana in a singular bite that Jisung entirely regrets witnessing.  


"You need to loosen up." Hyunjin says. "You've kinda got a stick up your ass, you know that?" Seungmin's face snaps over towards Hyunjin's, eyebrows knit together and mouth open slightly like he's going to make an angry rebuttal, but Hyunjin is just grinning as if he meant what he said in the kindest way possible, and Seungmin's face melts into a soft little smile and he rolls his eyes.  


"Yeah, whatever." He says. It's such a strange interaction, Jisung can't understand it. Jisung can't understand a lot of the interactions he witnesses between people, or sometimes even the ones he experiences himself. It's almost as if nobody in the entire world is normal and they're all just doing whatever comes to mind. The thought is kind of comforting.  


Seungmin ends up getting a macchiato, Hyunjin orders an americano, and Jisung goes for a mocha frappuccino because he likes to eat the sweet froth on top. To be honest if he could just order a cup filled with whipped cream and chocolate shavings without looking like a total moron, he would.  


"I wish there was a better coffee place somewhere nearby." Seungmin says. He drives with one hand and uses the other to cautiously bring his cup up to his lips.  


"Dunkin' Donuts." Hyunjin suggests.  


"I said 'better,' not cheaper." Seungmin says. It's possible that he's a pretentious asshole and that's why Minho doesn't like him. Jisung considers this. But Hyuniin and Felix sure seem to like him. Jisung decides that Seungmin is alright, pachycephalosaurus or not. If he can afford to drive an Audi and be picky about his coffee, good for him.  


"Hey, you guys hang out with Lee Minho, right?" Jisung asks. He spies Seungmin pursing his lips in the rearview mirror, and Hyunjin whirls around in his seat, eyes wide and obviously excited.  


"Ooo yeah yeah yeah!" Hyunjin nods his head eagerly. "What about him?"  


"Ah, I was just wondering. He's in my chemistry class." Jisung says. He stares into his plastic cup and twirls his straw around, mixing the frozen coffee and whipped cream.  


"Tsh, how ironic." Seungmin laughs.  


"Why do you say that?" Jisung looks up from his drink.  


"That guy has zero chemistry."  


"Oh, please." Hyunjin scoffs. "With those eyes? That guy is BEAUTIFUL. And he's SO charming." If Jisung didn't know any better, he might think Hyunjin had a crush on Minho, but he's known Hyunjin long enough to understand that he talks about everyone like that. He only does it in private though, face to face compliments from Hwang Hyunjin are few and far between.  


"Did you talk to him at all?" Hyunjin asks.  


"Yeah, a bit." Jisung says. He doesn't know why he brought it up in the first place. It's a small school, he's just curious since Minho is new.  


"Well, if you're free this upcoming weekend we should all hang out again. I'm serious too. I bet Minho would like that, I'll tell him. He likes your style and your funny teeth. And I want to see that Jeongin guy again, I think I love him. You remember how cute he was, Seungmin? I bet his hair is really soft. He was so tiny and shy, I could just keep him in my pocket forever-"  


"Wait, he said that about me?" Jisung cuts off Hyunjin's rambling speech about Jeongin.  


"Who said what?" Hyunjin asks.  


"Minho likes my style?"  


"Oh, pfff, yeah I guess." Hyunjin says, eyeing Jisung's zippy red windbreaker and worn out jeans. "He pointed you out at lunch like a week ago, asked which way you swung, something like that. I don't know, I just told him you're not on the baseball team." Jisung nearly chokes on his drink and Seungmin slaps a palm over his own forehead. Hyunjin does not take notice of either reaction. He's too dense.  


"So about this weekend, I'm thinking I'll just call Felix and ask him if he wants to hang. We can all go to his house again. You practically live over there anyway." Hyunjin says. Jisung is still reeling from what he said before. Why Jisung? Why would Minho notice Jisung? He didn't think he was so lame, especially not when he was with Chan and Changbin, the three of them had a lot of fun together, but at school? That was another story. Jisung tries his very best to go undetected and avoid social interactions at school. He keeps his head down so he won't accidentally make eye contact, keeps his headphones on so no one tries talking to him, and always has his notebook out to stay busy. A second more panic inducing thought comes to mind.  


"Wait, you're inviting everyone over THIS weekend?" Jisung's voice rises involuntarily and Hyunjin gives him a funny look.  


"Sure, what's wrong with that? You got a doctor's appointment or something?" He asks. Jisung buries his face in his hands.  


"No, this can't be happening." He groans, but his words are absorbed but his palms.  


"Otis pants be flattering?"  


"Hey, maybe we don't all want to hang out this weekend." Seungmin chimes in. He gets it.  


"Ah man! It won't be any fun without you." Hyunjin says and pouts in Seungmin's direction.  


"That's not what I- wait, really?" Seungmin's attempt to save Jisung quickly crumbles under Hyunjin's sparkly gaze.  


"Yeah, if you don't come who's gonna say, 'here's a bit of trivia for you: people who post their fitness routine on social media are more likely to have psychological problems, which explains why Changbin is so unique.'" Hyunjin says, mimicking Seungmin's voice.  


"Did I say that?" Seungmin asks.  


"Yeah…"  


"Well, it remains true."  


Jisung doesn't know how he would be able to act normal spending an entire weekend around Minho, especially considering his fresh knowledge of the new kid's interest in him. He can't foresee a way out of it though. He could just… stay home for a weekend? He hasn't done that in YEARS, he literally wouldn't know what to do with himself. If he doesn't see Chan he runs the risk of becoming depressed too. But the weekend isn't for five days. Five days. Jisung can probably come up with something in that amount of time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhhhh I feel like this chapter is kinda short, sorry :'D I hope you like it anyway !!


	3. House Party Plans

Jisung's high school uses a block schedule, and classes alternate every day. What this means is that Tuesday passes by in a boring blur of AP lit, anatomy, study hall, and phys ed. It's so long and boring, actually, that by the time Jisung gets home he can't even remember what happened at all. It just sets Wednesday up to be so much more… eventful. Because Wednesday is chemistry class again. Which means Minho again. Jisung half expected him to ignore his existence entirely, act like Monday never happened, but instead he pays an early visit. Chemistry is third block, and Jisung has lunch right before. He's always sat at a little round table with Chan and Changbin, it's the one piece of social interaction he has that breaks up the day, and it's consistent and it's routine.  


The cafeteria food isn't horrible, but Jisung has never eaten at school. He's always waited until the end of the day when he gets home to stuff his face with sweets and carbs. That is also something that is consistent and routine, and no matter how much his stomach grumbles at noon, he's convinced that if he were to suddenly eat food at this time after years of avoiding it, something would go very wrong.  


"... well, knock on wood." Jisung hears Changbin say, as he raps a fist on the blue plastic table.  


"That's not wood." Chan points out. Jisung hadn't been listening. The cafeteria is simultaneously his favorite place to be, and his most hated. It means he's getting a 20 minute break and he gets to see his buddies, which is super cool and rad, but it is also VERY loud and distracting and Jisung is scared of loud noises and he has the attention span of a goldfish when there are too many people around.  


"Whatever, it still counts." Changbin says. Chan makes a face like he's not sure.  


"Does it?" He argues. Jisung adjusts his headphones, turns the volume up ever so slightly, not enough that he won't be able to hear if someone needs him, but just enough that the room doesn't feel so noisy. 'And I fear this admiration / Will be the end of me / Blurring the lines between what I want / And what I need.' Jisung's pen goes dry, and he taps it on the back of his hand in an attempt to get the ink flowing again, but it's no use. Sighing in frustration, he ducks down under the table to put the old pen in his bag and retrieve a new writing utensil. He can see just beyond Chan's dust stained backpack, and his eyes go wide when he spies a pair of feet approaching from the opposite direction, and he just KNOWS it's going to be Minho. All he can make out are white tennis shoes and blue jeans, but it doesn't matter. There's nobody else who would be coming up to their group. Maybe Felix, but Felix wears Chucks.  


"Hey," Jisung hears him. It's one hundred percent Minho. He sits up before he's completely out from underneath the table and smacks his head on the edge of it causing his headphones to fall completely off and land in his lap. The pain is dulled by his silent panic.  


"Hi!" Jisung says, using his right hand to apply pressure to his head where he just hit it and smiling a little bit too crazy to look friendly.  


"Are you okay? That looked painful." Minho observes.  


"Oh yeah, I'm GREAT, heh heh." Jisung laughs, and even that sounds deranged.  


"Hey, Minho," Changbin casually waves. "What's up?" It's his signature line.  


"Hey…" Minho awkwardly trails off, obviously forgetting what Changbin's name is, but quickly moves on. "Jisung, is it alright if I sit with you?" Jisung's brain screams, AGAIN?? But he just nods his head.  


"Yeah, of course."  


"I just figured, you know, since we share our next class we could walk together." Minho says, pulling up a chair and placing it between Jisung and Changbin. He's wearing a white button up with a denim jacket that matches his jeans today. Chan and Changbin share a look that Jisung pretends to ignore.  


"Is anyone allergic to nuts?" Minho asks as he digs around in his lunch box.  


"Nah, you're good." Chan says. Minho procures a peanut butter sandwich and takes a bite off the corner. It's quiet for a second too long and Jisung is considering evaporating when Felix enters the cafeteria with Hyunjin, and both of them find Minho with their eyes and come over to the small table.  


"Hey, you switched spots." Hyunjin says in an accusatory tone.  


"Hi Chan, hi Jisung, hey Changbin." Felix greets each of the boys and moves to stand behind Chan, placing his little hands on his brother's shoulders.  


"Yeah." Minho confirms Hyunjin's previous statement.  


"Well, where's Jeongin?" Hyunjin asks no one in particular.  


"I'm not sure," Chan says, dragging out the M in 'I'm.' 

"He might be in the library? I've been trying to get him to come out here but I guess today is not our lucky day."  


"He eats in the library? Aww, that's so cute." Hyunjin visibly busts an uwu right as Seungmin makes his entrance.  


"Last time I ate in the library you told me I was a loser." He says, and Hyunjin startles.  


"Jeez, don't go sneaking up on me like that!" Hyunjin scolds him. "When you eat in the library it's because you're trying to study, because you're a nerd. Jeongin is probably in there because he's shy, and shy people are SO adorable."  


"Aren't you shy though?" Felix asks.  


"Tshh, no." Hyunjin scoffs.  


"You are when you're alone." Felix says.  


"How would you know that?"  


"Because you complain to me when you don't have any classes with us, because you don't know how to make friends, because you're shy." Felix says.  


"Hey, you guys can sit if you want." Changbin says, pulling out the only empty chair left. Felix immediately takes it and twists around so he can stick his tongue out at Seungmin and Hyunjin who are left standing. Hyunjin looks to Seungmin, and Seungmin's shoulders sag in defeat.  


"Fine." He mumbles, and walks over to the other side of the room to collect two more chairs from the unused stacks by the wall. This table is only meant to fit four people at best. Three was comfy. Seven? Jisung rubs his hand up and down his own thigh to calm himself down when everyone starts to come closer together in order to fit. He focuses on the feeling of the fabric. He wishes he was sitting next to Chan right now. Usually when things start to get too crowded he plays with the hair on the back of Chan's head. Textures are very grounding for Jisung, and Chan's curly hair is coarse but soft at the same time. He actually pouts across the table at his friend just thinking about patting his dandelion puff head, but Chan is busy talking to Felix.  


"Here, you dropped this." Minho's voice catches Jisung's attention as the brown haired boy pokes him in the upper arm with his headphones.  


"Oh, thanks, I didn't even notice." Jisung says, accepting the item. They must have slipped from his lap. He quickly places them back on his head, covering both of his ears.  


"Hey, Felix, I was meaning to ask about something." Hyunjin says. "Actually, I guess this is important for all of you, so it's good everyone's here."  


"Something important for me!?" Changbin gasps.  


"Well, it's not that important for you I guess," Hyunjin says, and Changbin sticks his bottom lip out. "But everyone else! Is everyone free this weekend?"  


"I have to work a late shift at the hospital." Minho says, and Jisung feels physically relieved. "But it's on Friday night, so I'm free after that." And Jisung tenses up again.  


"Well you know us, we're always at the house." Chan says, gesturing to himself, Jisung, and Changbin.  


"Why? What's up?" Felix asks.  


"I just had so much fun hanging out with everyone last friday, don't you guys think we should do it again?" Hyunjin suggests.  


"Another party?" Changbin groans.  


"No, not another party, silly! Just a hang out." Hyunjin says.  


"Wait, are you inviting yourself and everyone else over to MY house right now?" Felix asks. Hyunjin frowns.  


"Well, when you put it that way-"  


"I'm in! And we'll all sleep in Channie's room!" Felix says excitedly, and Hyunjin's eyes light up.  


"Really!? See? It's fun, everyone wants to do it."  


"Everyone in my room?" Chan repeats. He looks tired just thinking about it. "Doesn't that seem like a lot of people in a rather small space?"  


"What do you mean? We did it like five days ago." Hyunjin says.  


"Not exactly." Seungmin reappears with the chairs for him and Hyunjin to squeeze their way into the circle. "Last weekend me, you, and Minho slept in Felix's room." Hyunjin considers this, but Felix cuts in again.  


"Hogwash! There's plenty of floor space." He waves it off.  


"Yeah, PLENTY of floor space." Changbin agrees, sounding irritated because he has slept on Chan's floor every weekend for the past five years. He complains about it whenever he gets a chance, but Chan and Jisung still won't ever let him on the bed.  


"We'll have to tell Jeongin, of course." Hyunjin says, taking on a dreamy expression.  


"Sure, I'll text him right now." Chan says. "I'm not sure what he'll say since- oh would you look at that! He said he'd ask his parents."  


"Wow, he replies fast." Felix says.  


"Ah, I don't know if I can make it… actually." Jisung says. He thinks it must be obvious that he's lying, but Chan looks at him with pure shock.  


"No way." He says. Jisung and Chan haven't missed a weekend together in years. They've made it a silent agreement that spending weekends together is practically mandatory. Changbin can't make it sometimes because of work, but he gets a pass. Jisung NEVER misses a weekend.  


"I mean…" Jisung trails off. Chan seems really concerned, and maybe a little hurt, and he's unfairly cute.  


"Yeah, it should be fine." Jisung caves. Chan tilts his head slightly in question, but Jisung avoids his gaze. He would be fine. He would be absolutely fine.  


It isn't until they are in chemistry class that Jisung notices how Minho's two front teeth are slightly longer than the rest. It should make him look like a rabbit, but there's something about his face that's so cat-like. Maybe it's his carefree and disconnected vibe. During their brief walk from the cafeteria to the basement level classroom, Minho had asked Jisung about his notebook that always seemed to be out.  


"Oh, it's nothing. I just umm… I write stuff." Jisung had said. He felt uncomfortable about the topic as he rarely shared such details about himself, but Minho just stared at him, so unreadable.  


"What kind of stuff?" He asked further. Jisung could feel his face getting warm and he hoped to god that it didn't show.  


"Lyrics mostly." He said.  


"Oh, are you in a band?"  


"Kind of?" Jisung said. He wasn't really sure what to call it. He never considered him, Chan, and Changbin to be a band per se, but they did make music.  


"It's just for fun. Chan and Changbin and I… we make songs, so we all do a lot of writing."  


"That is very cool. You know, people who make music are always smart." Minho said. Jisung thought it was kind of a strange thing to say. He knew he was smart, but he didn't think it had anything to do with the music.  


"What makes you say that?" He asked.  


"It's just a fact." Minho stated. "People who know music understand certain things that people who don't never could."  


"Well, pfff, what about you?" Jisung had asked. He was clearly flustered with the topic of conversation, in part because it circulated around one of his most personal passions in life, but also because he was suddenly hyper aware of how Minho spoke, and how Minho's mismatched eyes showed nothing but everything at the same time. And then he laughs, and then Jisung sees it. He sees Minho's funny teeth, yeah, but he sees something else. He sees someone who is tired with the ordinary, someone who doesn't care about reality, someone who wants to talk to Jisung because Jisung isn't talking with anybody else, someone who needs to laugh. It's most likely probably absolutely a completely insane assumption to make about someone in an instant of accidental observation, and Jisung has no fucking idea how he can pretend to know these things about someone he just met, but it feels very real, and very realistic.  


"What about me?" Minho asks. Maybe it's because he's pretty, and that's a new way for Jisung to look at someone like Minho. Jisung is perfectly capable of knowing when a man is good looking, but not like that. Chan is cute, of course. Changbin is dark and interesting. Felix enchanting, like a fairy. As bitter as it makes him, Jisung will admit that Hyunjin has a special type of beauty entirely his own. But Minho is… pretty. And he's not pretty like a girl, Jisung knows girls and Jisung likes girls. Minho is pretty like Minho, and Jisung has simply never seen a guy like that.  


"What do you like? What do you do? Where are you from? And why on earth are you still talking to me?" Jisung asks a string of questions that he never would have expected himself to ask.  


"Well," Minho's eyebrows bounce up and fall quickly back down on time with his voice. "I like a lot of things, but I'm a dancer. If you must know, I used to live in Hunts Point. It makes this place seem pretty stale, but I keep talking to you because you look like the main character."  


"The-the main character?" Jisung asks. Minho smiles at his hands that are idly resting on the grey tabletop.  


"Yeah." He says, but he offers no further explanation.  


"You're uhm… you're really odd, you know that?" Jisung says and his voice cracks.  


"Do you like it?" Minho asks. Jisung swallows hard. He's saved by a message from Chan and he quickly takes his phone out of his pocket to stare at the screen. He'll accept anything to avoid looking at Minho right now.  


Channie: Hey are you okay? You seemed  
weird at lunch  


Jisung: Are you busy after school today?  
We need to talk  


Channie: I'm supposed to have a shift at  
the animal shelter, but I can always call in  
sick or something  


Jisung almost feels bad about asking his best friend to miss work… almost. He's kind of freaking out though and really needs some help getting his thoughts in order.  


Jisung: Yeah, I'd really like that. Thanks,  
man  


Channie: Anytime. I hope you're okay  


When Jisung reluctantly returns his attention to Minho, the other boy is already focused on his paperwork. Jisung thinks he does like it, how odd Minho is. He likes how interesting the new kid makes his day, despite the nerves and the overthinking. Jisung doesn't say any of this. He wouldn't ever.


	4. Chapter 4

"Lee Minho is RUINING my life!"  


"Wait, wait, wait, slow down. What? Who?" Chan is sitting, not ON his bed, but IN his bed, with his back propped up against a wall of pillows, and the grey covers pulled across his legs. He looks like he just woke up from a solid fifteen minute nap and he's eating pickles straight from the jar with a fork. It's something he normally does when he's depressed.  


"You remember Minho, right? The black cat from the halloween party? Sat with us at lunch today?" Jisung asks. He arrived just two minutes ago, it's a miracle his mom agreed to drive him over, and he couldn't be bothered to wait for usual greetings. 'Hey man,' and 'what's up mate?' Chan probably really was taking a nap before Jisung so rudely barged into his room.  


"Yeah, yeah I remember." Chan says, and takes a bite of pickle. His face is so swollen right now.  


"Well he's in my chemistry class, and he keeps sitting with me, and I don't really know why? But I was in the car with Seungmin and Hyunjin yesterday because I missed the bus - I would have called you but Seungmin offered - and Hyunjin said that Minho was talking about me and he asked like, which way I swung? And like, man, don't you think that's a little heavy? Especially since he keeps talking to me, again I don't even know why, but now we're all supposed to hang out this weekend because HYUNJIN had to-"  


"Jisung! Mate!" Chan interrupts him. He's clearly bewildered, eyebrows raised and puffy little eyes opened wide, jar of pickles forgotten in his left hand. "I have no idea what you're saying." Jisung rubs his temples and takes a deep breath.  


"I'm sorry I'm just-"  


"No it's okay, just slow down."  


"-stressed."  


"Do you want anything? Coke? Pickles? Hug?" Chan asks. Jisung scrunches his nose. Him and Chan don't share hugs often, but that doesn't stop the older boy from constantly offering.  


"No, it's alright." He says. Chan sets the pickle jar down on his bedside table and readjusts to a more comfortable 'listening' position.  


"So Minho is talking to you a lot and you're nervous about this weekend?" He asks. That sounds very simple. To Jisung, it doesn't FEEL so simple, but Chan isn't wrong either. Most of Jisung's problems come from his own head.  


"Yeah, essentially." He confirms Chan's inquiry. The curly haired boy nods his head in understanding.  


"Ji, if you're really anxious about it, you don't HAVE to come over this weekend. I can't ban everyone else from coming over, Felix seems really excited and he's going to have Hyunjin and Seungmin over no matter what, and I'm positive Hyunjin will find a way to make sure Minho is here, but like, I'm not going to put your mental health on the line. Seriously, if you're not feeling up to it, I'll totally understand. We'll tell the others you had to go to the dentist or something."  


"A dentist appointment… all weekend?" Jisung asks with disbelief.  


"Or a family engagement or something, I don't know. I don't want you to make yourself do something that's going to be bad for you in the end." Chan says.  


"No, I'll be okay." Jisung lies through his teeth. He doesn't want to make this more of an ordeal than it needs to be.  


"Jisung-"  


"I can't… I can't stay home." The younger boy admits. Chan opens his mouth and closes it again, then frowns as he begins to grasp the situation.  


"I thought you said that was better now." He says, and when his voice sounds accusatory, Jisung knows it comes from a place of concern.  


"Well it was, for a while. I have to…" Jisung trails off momentarily. "I have to see you." He says it more to Chan's floor than Chan himself. Jisung's home life isn't horrible. His parents love him, he knows that, they just fight with him SO much. They don't support anything he does and they make him feel like total shit over every dinnertime conversation. It got to a point where Jisung was sneaking out and asking Chan to let him stay over on weeknights because he just couldn't deal with it anymore. After a particularly horrible screaming match Jisung had apologized and so did his parents and they decided that they would all try to communicate better. Things turned around for a while, almost a whole summer, until Jisung mentioned that he still wanted to go into music and it all started over. This time he didn't tell anyone though, he pretended they were still on good terms to save face.  


"Jisung," Chan says it with so much sympathy.  


"It's not a big deal, okay? I just… I get sad if we don't hang out." Jisung mumbles, but Chan still manages to catch it. He nods his head.  


"So Minho," He starts, switching the subject because Jisung will get uncomfortable if they talk about his family problems or his platonic love for Chan for too long.  


"Oh God-"  


"Does he make you nervous just because he's new or…?" Chan knows that Jisung struggles with opening up to new friends. Chan also knows that Minho is notoriously mega gay, although Jisung hasn't fully realized this yet.  


"I don't know, it's weird." Jisung says. He sits on the end of Chan's bed and brings his knees up to his chest. "He's really cool, I think. I'm almost intimidated by him? In a way? He's so weird, I don't ever know what to say to him."  


"Nobody ever knows what to say to anybody." Chan shrugs.  


"Well maybe YOU don't, but if you haven't noticed I am very witty and smooth." Jisung says. It's complete bullshit because Jisung is probably the most socially awkward human on the planet.  


"Whatever, that's not what I meant. Like, just stop thinking about it so much. You have to just say whatever comes to mind, don't worry about how you sound, and DEFINITELY stop worrying about what Minho thinks or how he'll react. I talked to him a lot more after the party last weekend and you're right, he's pretty friggin weird, which is why I think it shouldn't matter so much how you act."  


"No, bad idea. If I say whatever comes to mind, I'm going to talk myself into a gutter REAL quick." Jisung argues. Chan rolls his eyes.  


"So literal," he laughs. "You can still use a filter, just try to be more… open."  


"Open?" Jisung repeats, and the word sounds foreign.  


"Yeah, that's right. I mean really, what have you got to be so afraid of?" Chan asks. Jisung thinks about this for a moment. He thinks about Minho's face and Minho's laugh. He thinks about how these past two chemistry classes have been the most fun 80 minute school periods he's ever had probably in his life, and he thinks about how it makes him feel to know that someone wants to talk to him. He feels kind of special, which in turn makes him feel like a fool. He thinks about talking to Minho outside of their school, imagines they're at Chan's house and in a moment where everyone leaves it's just the two of them, and THEN he feels scared.  


"Ahhhhh," He groans and rubs his eyes with the heels of his hands. "I don't know."  


"If you're scared he's not going to like you or he's going to be mean to you or something, you shouldn't be. He's very nice, maybe a bit different, but I get the sense he's the type to get along with anyone." Chan says.  


"Well, not ANYONE," Jisung says. "He doesn't like Seungmin, he told me that. They don't get along. But that's kind of the opposite of what I'm worried about anyway."  


"What do you mean?"  


"It's not that he won't like me, it's that he might like me… too much." Jisung explains. Chan smiles and laughs, then coughs to try to cover it up, but his ears are turning very red, a telltale sign that he knows exactly what is going on and he won't admit it.  


"Jisung… just don't even worry about it, seriously."  


"I am serious! He freaks me out a little bit!"  


"What, because he's into you?" And there it is; the slip up. Chan can't keep a secret, especially not one like that, curse his Libra sun.  


"HAH! So you knew!" Jisung points at his friend who's now a crimson mess.  


"NO! I mean, what? Okay, yes! He asked me about you and said he liked your cute butt, but it's not a problem! Okay? Just be really obvious that you don't feel the same way and he'll leave you alone. It's like I said, he's really nice, he's not gonna bother you."  


"He- it totally IS a problem, Chan! He said he likes my cute BUTT? Are you SERIOUS?!"  


"What do you want me to do? Tell Felix that Minho isn't allowed to come over because you're self conscious of your rear?" Both boys are gradually raising their voices, not out of anger but rather a mutual panic-born enthusiasm.  


"Did someone call for me?" Felix peaks his head in the doorway.  


"No, no, I'm sorry. We were just… discussing." Chan says, and gestures to the general surroundings. Felix nods his head once before retreating, probably back up the stairs to his own room.  


"Did you just say 'rear?' What are you? Fifty?" Jisung hisses.  


"Well what should I do?" Chan whispers, but the urgency in his voice is ever present. It's honestly comical.  


"I don't know, just say ass or something."  


"Not THAT! I mean about this weekend!" Chan throws his long arms into the air. Jisung sits back down on the bed and, resting his elbows on his thighs, buries his face into his hands and lets out a long sigh.  


"I'll just suck it up and go." He grumbles. He feels a warm hand on his back and it rubs gentle circles.  
"The weekend after, we can go bowling and get bottomless french fries." Chan says, voice soft yet uplifting.  


"That sounds really fun." Jisung says. He wishes that's what they were doing THIS weekend. He wonders for a second if Minho is any good at bowling, or if he even LIKES bowling.  


"Just so we're clear… are you, yaknow, interested in Minho?"  


"CHAN!"  


"What?! It's a valid question." Chan reasons. Jisung looks between his friend and the half empty jar on his bedside table, fork partly submerged in the green vinegar. And Chan's hair is looking mighty crusty too.  


"Are you alright?" Jisung asks. He knows it's a sudden change in topics, but he's pretty much done talking about Minho right now anyway.  


"Uhhhh yeah? You don't have to answer that question, I really just thought it was relevant-"  


"No, that's not what I'm talking about." Jisung says. He talks to Chan with his eyes, not judging him for his current state, but rather asking if he needs anything.  


"Oh, yeah, no I'm good. I just took a nap before you got here, I was tired. That's all, just tired." Chan explains, and then he does that little 'heehee' laugh that he always does when he feels uncomfortable, so Jisung decides to let it go.  


"I'm not interested in Minho, by the way. Not like that."  


"Well let me know if you change your mind." Chan says. As if that would happen.

~

It totally happens. It seems like this is becoming a common theme in Jisung's romcom of a life - to completely ignore or even flat out deny any semblance of interest in Lee Minho, only to be smacked in the face with a big gay fly swatter. Honestly, Minho didn't have to go off so hard though. He's drop dead for all Jisung cares, and every minute they spend together Jisung gets closer to doing just that. Dropping dead.  


"Are you on social media?" Minho asks as he carelessly dumps baking soda into the large bowl set up over the bunsen burner. Jisung is convinced that the brown haired boy has no idea what he's doing. He's never seen him actually read the instructions for any of the labs they've been assigned, and he's ALWAYS cursing, which is indicative of something going wrong.  


"Um, not really. Are you sure you're supposed to do that?" Jisung asks. He's more concerned with the rapidly burning baking soda than his lack of presence on Instagram.  


"What do you mean, 'not really?' I mean you either are, or you aren't." Minho says, ignoring the way Jisung worriedly peaks into the container of hot chemicals.  


"Okay, I guess technically yeah, I have an Instagram account, but I don't go on it. Seriously, did you look at the instruction sheet for this? I don't think you're supposed to heat the baking soda." Jisung is prepared to cut in and turn the burner off out of fear that something is going to explode, but Minho snaps his tongs together menacingly and shoots a harsh puff of air out his nose.  


"How come?" He asks, still on the stupid social media topic.  


"I don't have anything to post." Jisung says.  


"You could post your songs." Minho suggests. He adds a splash of clear liquid from an unmarked glass beaker, and Jisung really hopes it was just water.  


"What was that?" He asks. He takes the beaker and wafts the air around it towards his nose, cringing at the pungent smell. So it's not water.  


"Your songs." Minho repeats, absently mixing the chemicals with a metal stirrer. "You said you write lyrics, right? You could post them."  


"I'm talking about THIS!" Jisung holds the beaker out. "What the heck is this?"  


"You ask too many questions! We're supposed to be lab PARTNERS, not interrogators, damn." Minho clicks the tongs again like a warning of his growing irritation at Jisung's constant pestering, but the blond can't find a reason to care if he's being annoying.  


"Well you took the instructions before I could even read them, so it doesn't feel like very much of a group effort."  


"You and the instructions! Mind your own!" Minho snaps, and then dumps some more baking soda into the mix.  


"Well which is it, are we partners, or am I minding my own? I'm confused now." Jisung says. There's a good 80 percent of him that's being totally honest, but a very small fraction of him just wants to see what will happen if he keeps pushing Minho's buttons. Perhaps he'll leave Jisung alone if he realizes how much of a pain in the ass the blond can be. Jisung is satisfied with the idea, but only for a second before he feels a stronger sense of disappointment and hurt at the prospect of Minho ditching him so soon.  


"Look, if you want the instructions so bad, you could have just asked. It's really quite simple. Just hydrochloric acid and baking soda, supposed to make sodium chloride and carbon dioxide or something. I don't know, and I don't really care. Is this class THAT important to you?" Minho asks, flicking the printed instruction sheet to Jisung's side of the desk. He's clearly peeved off.  


"Uh, yeah." Jisung answers as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "I like to pass and not blow stuff up."  


"Why?" Minho persists. He sets the tongs down and turns to face his whole person towards Jisung. It makes him much more difficult to brush aside, especially since he's standing, leaning slightly against the table, and Jisung is sitting down, uselessly examining the paper he's just been given. It makes him feel quite small, and it makes Minho seem much taller, and that makes Jisung's stomach do flips. He averts his eyes to avoid thinking too many thoughts. His little fingers leave marks of condensation of the black tabletop.  


"Well everyone should want to pass, grades are always important, of course." Jisung gives an automated response, one that he knows he's supposed to say, because he's a good kid who tries his best.  


"Well I want to talk about your music, because that's what you really care about. Right?" Minho says. He's not wrong, not wrong at all, but,  


"There's a time and a place, Minho. You're not even supposed to be using the bunsen burner at all, why'd you turn it on?" Jisung reaches out to turn the dial off.  


"Time, place, none of it matters. Get out of your head for a second." Minho says. Jisung gives him his usual 'I don't know what the hell is going on' look, and Minho grows visibly more agitated.  


"Seriously, look at me. Do you think I care about reality? Do you think I care about this stupid class or if I blow up the whole room? I'm talking about right NOW. Like, God, do you even know-" Minho stops talking for a moment just to stare back at Jisung, utterly vexed. He sighs and turns away. Whatever fit of passion he had been working towards simply melts away and rolls off his shoulders. "Ten years from now you're not going to care if your lab partner in high school chemistry successfully made table salt or not. It just doesn't matter." He concludes. Jisung knows there was more to what he wanted to say, but he feels entirely responsible for killing his determination with his frustrating material stubbornness.  


"Here." Jisung says. He reaches into his bag that's sat on the tile floor and pulls his notebook out, the most recent one he's been using to write lyrics. He hands it to Minho, and he does it because he feels bad for being so tiresome, but he also does it because he wants to. From what he can tell, Minho might really understand half the words he has written down, or at the very least he won't judge any of it.  


"Really?" Minho asks.  


"Yeah, go ahead. Don't expect too much though." Jisung says. He shakes the notebook once to get Minho out of whatever freeze frame he seems to be stuck in, and the boy reaches out and accepts the book. The moment it leaves Jisung's fingertips he feels the weight of dread because he NEVER just hands his notebook over to someone, it has a lot of personal stuff and some downright embarrassing shit, but it's too late and Minho is already grazing his pretty eyes over the pages. What was the last thing Jisung wrote? He tries to remember.  


'I built you up too much / now I can't say it / what's on my mind / in case I go and scare you away.'  


Yeah, Jisung remembers that. There are so many random doodles surrounding everything, and his handwriting is pure shit, it's hardly even legible. But Minho flips through page after page with complete focus and intent.  


"What's this one about?" Minho asks after a while. Of course, he's paused on THAT page. It's entirely empty besides five words scribbled in black ink in the lower right hand corner. 'But dandelions are just weeds.'  


"It's hard to explain. I don't know, it just… it means what it means." Jisung says. He can't dictate his thoughts or feelings at all.  


"I think I get it." Minho says. Jisung wonders if he really does. Maybe he gets SOMETHING out of it, whether or not it's what Jisung meant is hard to know.  


"Hey, will you be at Felix and Chan's this weekend?" Minho asks. He gently shuts the notebook and slides it back across the table.  


"Yeah." Jisung says  


"Cool. Then I'll see you there."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhhhh I feel like these chapters are getting shorter and shorter? Maybe not? Idk, should I try to make a regular update schedule? This is pretty all over the place rn haha, I just post when I can. But what if I uploaded like, every Friday or sumn? Would that be cool? Or more like, whatever nobody cares bro? I'm just curious, tbh I don't even know if I could stick to a regular schedule.


	5. Love at First Sight (Duh)

Jisung is the second one to arrive at Chan's. He was ready to go the minute he got out of school, but when he got to his own house his mom was there simply waiting for him at the dining room table. It was nearly impossible to go undetected in their double wide, and she snapped her face up in time with the click of the closing door behind Jisung. He could immediately tell by her posture that she wanted to talk, but whether it was going to be something good or bad was a question that hung in the air.  


"Hey, how was your day?" She asked, and she smiled. It was the type of smile parents do when they know their kids are depressed but they have no fucking idea what to do about it. Her eyes were just so sorry and that automatically plucked a twinge of irritation.  


"It was fine." Jisung said. "Yours?"  


"It's been alright so far. I did some laundry, I stacked yours in your room." Maybe that was what she wanted to talk about, Jisung's room. She wasn't supposed to go in there, Jisung knew it would give her a heart attack. He hadn't picked anything up in over a year. He'd been reduced to sleeping on the chair in the corner of his room because of how much random crap he kept piled on his bed. It was no one's fault but his own, and yet he couldn't seem to ever find the motivation to change it.  


"So I got your progress report in the mail today." His mom held up a piece of paper littered with fold marks. "It looks really good. You're doing especially great in that chemistry class, with these marks you can probably get into a good university. What do you think about a science major? I think you'd do well."  


She thought he'd do well.  


How nice.  


"Sure, I'll think about it." Jisung said. He wouldn't really, but he didn't feel like getting into an argument about it. Science, as if. She never said anything about his writing scores, or his music grades. Obviously those were his strongest areas, but acknowledging it would be too close to being supportive and agreeable - things his parents couldn't understand.  


"Well have you been looking at any colleges? It's November, you should be applying as early as possible."  


"Can we talk about this later?" Jisung asked. Talking back to his mom never failed to make him feel like a corny bratty teenager, but he really just wanted to pack up a bag and get to Chan's house.  


"Well why later? What's wrong with right now?" His mom asked. She was quick to become defensive this time. Her posture shifted to be more closed off, legs AND arms crossed (oof, that's rough), and lips pursed. She was absolutely in the mood to have it out, and Jisung wondered why she couldn't just be happy that he wasn't totally bombing all of his classes. He knew kids who had failing grades in over half of their studies, and their parents never stopped encouraging them to keep working hard, they did it WITHOUT screaming too.  


"Ma, I just got home. I'm tired-"  


"You're tired? Why is that? Why would YOU be tired? I mean, YOU don't work nights at the hotel, do you?" His mom asked. She always used the 'I work a night job' card to try to make Jisung feel bad. Truth be told he probably wasn't as tired as her. She was lucky to get five hours of sleep in the morning, she had to worry about taxes and rent and stuff, AND she had to deal with Jisung, but that didn't mean he wasn't also exhausted by 2 PM.  


"I'm sorry, I just have a lot on my mind right now." Jisung mumbled. He stood in place, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, waiting to be dismissed from the entryway, as his mother looked at him with disappointment riddled in her eyes.  


"Well maybe we can discuss it this weekend. You and I can look at different schools together, try to plan what the best course of action is-"  


"I have plans this weekend." Jisung said. His mom rolled her eyes at him.  


"What, are you going to that Bang boy's house again? You two spend too much time together, maybe he's part of the problem."  


"The problem?" Jisung repeated, voice just shy of a whisper. His mom looked apologetic for a moment as she absorbed the weight of her own words, to have just labeled Jisung himself as 'the problem,' but it quickly vanished.  


"I mean, come on, can't you spend ONE weekend at home?" She asked.  


"I'm not seeing Chan this weekend." Jisung said, and he felt the back of his neck getting warm because he was lying. Well, not lying exactly.  


"I'm hanging out with Minho." He said it because he knew it would get him a better chance at leaving. His mom scoffed.  


"Who's Minho?"  


"A friend from school." Jisung gave a short answer. His mom knew he didn't have friends besides Chan and Changbin.  


"Since when?" She asked. Since a week ago. But Jisung couldn't say that, it would sound too suspicious.  


"Since a while ago. He's my lab partner in chemistry." He threw the chemistry part in because it might have made his mom more accepting of the idea.  


"Is he a nice boy?" She asked. Jisung considered this.  


"Yeah." He decided. He thought about the total disaster of the lab they did earlier. "He helps me with projects a lot." That seemed to satisfy his mom.  


"So you just met him this year?"  


"Yeah, he's a new student." Jisung said.  


"Where is he from?" Hunts Point.  


"Washington Heights." Jisung lied again, and oh how his mom smiled, so genuine.  


"Oh, perfectl!" She said. "I hope I can meet him sometime. If I can't do it, then you two should look into colleges this weekend, sounds like he's a good friend to have." As if Bang Chan WASN'T the best friend in the entire universe. The insinuation that Chan was somehow a bad influence, that Jisung was spending 'too much time with him,' and that he was merely 'that Bang boy' despite being consistently in Jisung's life for 14 years just lit the wrong fuse. So they argued. Right when he was almost free, he had to go and let his emotions get the better of him, and they argued all right.  


So Jisung arrives at Chan's nearly two hours later than usual because he walked there. Why he never just calls his friend and asks for a lift is beyond explanation - Chan would be more than willing to pick him up - but maybe it's because Jisung doesn't want to explain how he picked another fight with his mom. It's stupid. It's especially stupid because the walk to Chan's is no longer than an hour, the other hour was the one spent arguing. Arguing for a whole HOUR is a bit overkill.  


"-no they're on their way now, I guess Hyunjin couldn't decide what he wanted to wear or something." Jisung walks into Chan's room to find Felix lounging on the bed and staring up at the ceiling, words pouring from his lips without directing his attention at anyone in particular. Chan is sitting at his desk, spun around in his chair so he's hugging the backside of it and facing the open room. Changbin is on the floor, as usual, and he already has his little makeshift sleep space set up beside Chan's bed; mismatched blue and black blankets piled up for extra cushion, and that hideous lime green body pillow that was fuzzy once upon a time, but it's been kept in the closet and slept on for so many years that it's completely flattened and pathetic. He uses one hand to scroll through social media, while his other absently plucks at the frayed threads sticking out of the hole in the heel of Felix's sock.  


"Jisung! What took you so long?" Chan greets him. Felix sits up so fast that Jisung gets a second hand head rush, and Changbin looks over and smiles.  


"Hey." Jisung says. He drops his bag on the hardwood floor by the door, relieved to be rid of the weight. Almost immediately he sits down to undo his shoes, and it does feel GREAT to be off his feet.  


"Did you walk or something?" Chan asks.  


"No…" Jisung says.  


"Yeah." Changbin corrects him.  


"Why? I would have picked you up! I have the van for a reason!" Chan says.  


"You have the van so you can cart me around?" Jisung teases.  


"Yeah, pretty much." Chan deadpans. Once his shoes are off, Jisung drags himself over to the bed and flops down. The mattress is honestly not the best, it's a full size that feels more like a box of creaky springs with a flap of foam over it than an actual bed, but it's familiar and safe. The grey comforter is soft and warm too, and it smells like laundry detergent and Chan. Felix quickly attaches himself to Jisung's side, and he doesn't mind it. He's not particularly clingy, but Felix hugs are always welcome.  


"I gotta say folks, I have had a doozy of a day." Jisung says, and now he's the one staring up at the off white ceiling and talking to anyone listening.  


"Yeah, your foot smells like it." Changbin says, and bats at Jisungs toes.  


"That's not my foot you're smelling, it's your hair." Jisung says.  


"Ha ha, very funny." Changbin goes back to looking at his phone. He's playing Ariana Grande over the bluetooth speaker on Chan's desk, of course.  


"Was it your parents again?" Felix asks.  


"Yeah, my mom. She wanted to talk about college stuff." Jisung says. Everyone hums in understanding. Jisung doesn't want to drag the vibe down though, and he didn't come over to have a pity party, so he changes subject before anything more can be said.  


"So Seungmin and Hyunjin are on the way?" He asks.  


"Ah, yeah, they should be here any minute now." Felix says, and he checks his phone to see if there are any updates on their arrival.  


"When's Jeongin coming over?" Changbin asks.  


"Not sure… exactly. He said he would be here after he eats dinner, so I'm guessing closer to six?" Chan says. Changbin laughs out loud.  


"Bet Hyunjin flirts with him at LEAST eight times." He says, and Chan furrows his eyebrows.  


"I won't let him, Innie is a baby." He says.  


"Yeah, your baby." Jisung jokes.  


"Exactly." Chan agrees with a nod of his head. 

"Besides, flirting is not permitted between any parties under this roof. Unless of course it's-"  


"DON'T!" Changbin, Jisung, and Felix all say at once and swap glances.  


"All I was gonna say is that flirting is only permitted if it's out of earshot. Out of sight out of mind right?" Chan says, putting his hands up in surrender.  


"That is a HORRIBLE rule." Jisung says.  
"I'm alright with that." Changbin shrugs. He stands up and stretches his arms above his head. Jisung wonders if Chan is being serious (it seems like he's being serious), or if he's just making one of his weird Chan jokes.  


"Does that mean you can't do any flirting either? I mean, since you're always within earshot of yourself?" Felix asks as his eyes follow up the line of Changbin's back, and then flick over to Chan who is typing away on his phone.  


"Me? Yeah right, I don't flirt anyway." He says without looking up.  


"Uhh, yeah you do." Felix says.  


"Nuh uh." Chan shakes his head.  


"Yuh, huh. Chan, you TOTALLY do, and you're lying to my face." Felix props himself up on his elbows to see better.  


"When have I ever flirted with someone? Take it step further, when have I ever flirted with someone AND you were there to witness it?" Chan asks, setting his phone down only for it to vibrate three times consecutively.  


"You literally flirt with everyone, you can't stop yourself. Four days ago you told the cashier at KFC that she stole your heart."  


"Four days ago? I don't even remember yesterday morning, that's no fair. Besides, I'm pretty sure I said that to the bucket of wings we ordered." Chan says, rubbing his belly as if the mere mention of chicken has made him suddenly hungry.  


"Okay, well what about the time you were getting the pizza from the delivery guy and he asked if you were all set and you said, 'all I need is you.'" Felix recounts, then frowns. "Actually that was more creepy than anything, why did you say that?"  


"Again, I was talking to the food." Chan states.  


"Dude, you gotta stop doing that." Jisung says.  


"Uhhh, I'm pretty sure you told me I was 'looking mighty fine' once. And also you made me toaster strudels on multiple occasions." Changbin decides to join in on the conversation  


"Okay, you guys have no idea what flirting is. That's just bro stuff." Chan waves it off, and Changbin laughs.  


"I totally know what flirting is. I'm probably the best one of us at it. See? It's like this," He turns around to face Felix, and with his typical smirk he leans over the bed so his blue-black hair falls forward into his eyes, and it's quite characteristic of Changbin, but also MUCH too reminiscent of a cringey thirst trap.  


"Is it hot in here? Or is it just you?"  


"EWWWWWWWWWW!" Jisung nearly flings himself off the bed out of pure embarrassment. Felix is crumpling in on himself like a ball of paper set on fire and hiding his (very red) face in his hands as Changbin cackles. Jisung continues to make retching noises to prove his point that Changbin flirting is likely the most disgusting thing he's ever had to see, but he can still clearly hear Chan over the chaos.  


"Dude, don't flirt with my brother, I'll kill you."  


"Oh come on, man. It was a demonstration." Changbin whines.  


"Demonstrations need to take place out of earshot too!"  


"Hey, what's going on?" Hyunjin appears in the doorway carrying a blue plaid overnight bag on his front side, and Seungmin is hovering around behind him smiling as if he somehow understands what just happened, despite not having been in the room to see it, and he thinks it's funny.  


"Changbin-" Jisung starts but falls into a fit of giggles, which makes Felix start laughing too, and Changbin pouts and crosses his arms over his chest.  


"Oh, I see," Hyunjin laughs along as he fully enters the room. "Changbin."  


"I mean, pretty much." Chan agrees. Hyunjin sets his bag down next to Jisung's, and makes a dive for the bed. He quickly digs himself under the covers until just his little face is visible, super smiley and comfy.  


"You guys are mean to me. I don't even know if I can consider this a friendship." Changbin feigns seriousness and turns to face the wall, presumably so that no one catches him busting a chuckle.  


"You can say that again." Jisung says - it was too easy - and reaches out over the foot of the bed to meet Chan in a high five.  


"What the-" Changbin quickly turns his attention back toward the middle of the room.  


"You walked right into it, mate." Chan shrugs, no sympathy.  


“Hey now, I would consider this a friendship.” Seungmin says. He's grinning, but it's a suspiciously evil smile. He watches as Changbin's face picks up and his chest puffs out just slightly in pride before he lands the punchline.  


"It’s just very one sided.” Everyone laughs at that, and laughs at Changbin who stutters uselessly - bless his heart - thinking up timely comebacks is NOT his strong suit.  


Hours pass by playing monopoly and uno. Chan orders too much food (as usual), and Jisung feels more and more relaxed with every passing minute. It's surprising, he doesn't even flinch when Jeongin finally arrives - cautious as usual and with a timid smile as he quietly pushes through the door - and drops his overnight bag on the floor beside Hyunjin and Seungmin's.  


"JEONGIN!!" Hyunjin is the first to acknowledge his arrival, voice loud and breaking off at the last note, and Jisung doesn't reach for the red headphones around his neck. Hyunjin is loud, but it's not the same way the cafeteria at school is loud.  


"Jeongin is here!" Felix chimes in, sitting up on his knees and beaming.  


"Hey guys." Jeongin awkwardly laughs. It's only his second time hanging out with everyone. Technically it's only the second time ANY of them have been together in a whole group like this, but for Jeongin it's especially new because Chan is his only close friend here. Jisung at least knows everyone from prior years. He feels a bit sympathetic about Jeongin, and the kid reminds him of himself in this instance.  


"You made it! What took so long? Are you hungry? There's all kinds of food in the fridge." Chan says. His eyes light up as he speaks, and he rises from his chair.  


"Oh, yeah, no, I just got delayed a little bit. I already had dinner though-"  


"Come on, we ordered too much, you gotta have some. Be a team player, yaknow?" Chan takes Jeongin's arm and leads him (drags him) immediately back out of the room, presumably to force feed him leftover takeout. Hyunjin stares after them dreamily, and then pouts.  


"Man, he just took him right away! I was about to propose."  


"Jinnie, it's too soon." Felix says.  


"I'm in LOVE." Hyunjin argues.  


"What?" Changbin snorts.  


"Well when will it NOT be too soon? How long do I wait? An hour?"  


"Bro, you've barely known him a week." Jisung says.  


"Uhmmm, love at first sight, DUH. Ever heard of it?" Hyunjin retorts. He's such a-  


"Not real. It's purely chemicals. You think he's attractive so your brain is releasing hormones." Seungmin says, seemingly disinterested as he's sat on the floor inspecting his nails.  


"So boring." Hyunjin rolls his eyes.  


"I mean, he's not wrong." Jisung agrees with Seungmin, who nods his head in approval.  


"Felix?" Hyunjin asks, waiting for his friend to back him up. Felix looks around the room, opens and closes his mouth, and awkwardly messes with the hair on the back of his head. He makes brief eye contact with Changbin from partway across the room who looks just as uncomfortable, and  


"I- I don't, I mean I've never-"  


"Whatever, you guys all think romance is dead? I say, I'll be living happily ever after in a castle with Jeongin while you peasants worry about your science homework."  


"That… doesn't? Make sense?" Seungmin says, raising an eyebrow.  


"If you're living in a castle with Jeongin, you'll be living with Chan too. They're inseparable, I promise." Changbin says. "Oh, and if you're with Chan, you'll be with Jisung. Jisung can't live without his Chan. It'll be a fun little group. Castle group."  


"What? I'm not living in a castle with Hyunjin!" Jisung is horrified at the idea. Hwang Hyunjin? No way, he's too perfect. Living with him would give Jisung a thousand complexes.  


"Ugh, whatever." Hyunjin groans.  


The door reopens as Chan and Jeongin enter, now with plates of food, and Minho trailing behind them. Finally, FINALLY Jisung's stomach drops and the nervousness kicks in. If he thought he could go one night without feeling anxious he would be lying to himself.  


"Hey guys, Minho's here." Chan says, announcing the friend's arrival. A collective "hey" and "hi Minho" voices from the group.  


"I want to make this clear right away," Minho says, directing his attention at the general room. "I brought my own air mattress, and if anybody tries to get on it I WILL swipe your kneecaps."  


"Understood." Changbin says, stealing a chicken wing from Chan's plate.  


Jisung stares at Minho shamelessly. He said he had work tonight; he must have just gotten back. His brown hair is always a mess, but it's an intentional looking mess. It's just bad now. He looks good though. He looks very good. When their eyes somehow meet for a half a second, Jisung looks away, and he looks away quite shamefully. Tonight was going to be a very interesting night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhh sorry I haven't updated in so long!! College is stressful and I hit a little bit of a writer's block... I don't think this chapter is superb but the next few should be better, I'm getting back into the flow of it I think :D pls bare with me on this

**Author's Note:**

> Howdy!! This is my first time to post something with chapters, hehe. I don't think (?) it's going to be very long,,, but we'll see. This is actually a small part of a much larger project I've been working on, and as always all of my works are from the same AU, so if you're curious at all for a deeper insight you can check out my other posts :D They're all out of order though, sorry... N E ways I hope you uhhhh friggin uhhhh like this n stuff


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